First day covers are collectible envelopes, which carry a new issue set of stamps, cancelled by a first day of issue postmark. Collecting first day covers is a fun and exciting hobby and a potential investment, that enables you to gain knowledge or own a piece of history, as covers are often carried, autographed or both. Covers have flown on Concorde, travelled with the QE2 and performed with the Red Arrows. Many have also been signed by relevant famous people including Film stars, Sports stars, Prime Ministers, Royalty, Military Heroes and Test Pilots.

Steps

1

Who produces first day covers? All Great British stamps come from Royal Mail. But not all covers come from them. Royal Mail does produce its own covers but several private producers do too. These are the ones to choose if you want to collect covers that could be worth something in the future. Royal Mail covers are fun but will never be worth much more than what you paid for them because they are mass produced and have your name and address printed on.

2

What cover producer to choose? There are several main private producers; Buckingham Covers, Benham, Westminster and Adrian Bradbury. Buckingham Covers and Adrian Bradbury are the first for quality. Buckingham Covers are seen as the best investments, because the company actively buys back their own covers, often at higher prices than they sold them. Benham were traditionally UK’s leading cover producer, but in recent years they seem to have lost their way.

3

What covers to collect? Some people like to have everything and collect lots of covers every year. This may not be for you and my advice is to buy what you like. Quality counts, so buy the best you can afford and covers carrying genuine signatures add to their value.

4

Limited Editions. How many of one cover should be produced? Future value does not depend on the number produced, it depends on the number of new collectors and a large appeal. So don’t fall into the “only 50 produced, they will be worth a fortune trap”. Very small numbers make the people who have them happy and just annoy the ones who haven't. At the other end the cover may be a limited edition of 1000, which is fine if they are selling out but not if they still have 600 in stock. Why not give the producer a call and ask them how many they still have available. But which ever way you decide to go buy the cover you like first.

5

Cover addresses. All newly produced covers should have no address on them and if you are interested in older covers, try to purchase ones with pencil, printed labels or typed addresses.

6

Looking after your covers: Purchase an album with leaves to hold your covers. This will keep them safe and protect them. Keeping your covers in good condition helps them hold their value. If you want to show of your covers, why not frame them for the wall? Be sure to use acid-free mounts and boards and do not hang in direct sunlight.

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Community Q&A

Many FDCs may not be worth much if they have been canceled, but the ones that have been canceled with first-day date may be of some value to collectors as well the blank ones. So, basically hold on to them. Try contacting Antiques Road Show at their website for more info, someone might be in your area to help answer your questions.

Tips

Some like to collect covers by theme; military, aviation, animals and sport.

If you are buying signed covers, check the signature is genuine and buy with care from eBay. Reputable producers such as Buckingham Covers, Adrian Bradbury and Benham, are known to sell genuinely autographed covers that raise funds for charity. But if you are buying the cover 2nd hand, a signature could have been forged later on. If in doubt, check with the producer.

When buying a cover, always check the condition:

If you are buying new covers, the questions to ask are: have similar covers from that producer sold out? Are they worth more now? Does the producer buy back their own covers?

Learn everything you can about collecting covers so you can spot the good ones. Talk to dealers, look on eBay, read catalogues (Adrian Bradbury produces a well known one), go to exhibitions (such as Stampex in London in February and September), subscribe to mailing lists and look at prices.

Covers should mainly be collected for fun, but if you choose carefully and look after them they can have investment potential for the future.

The edges of the stamp should be perfect. Most stamps have perforations (lines of small holes between rows of stamps that make them easy to tear and separate). The perforations must be complete. Missing perforations mean a cover is completely ruined.

The stamps should be stuck flat with no air bubbles, lumps, bumps or creases.

The postmark should be clear. You want to be able read the date and place.

The postmark should touch each stamp once and link them to the envelope.

The envelope should be clean.

Be careful with addresses. Small printed dealers’ addresses or peel-able labels are acceptable. Handwritten ink addresses are only acceptable on issues up to 1953 (The Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II). Between 1953 and 1971 (Decimalization), you should try to get covers with a neat typed or label address. From 1971, collectors expect a neat label, light pencil or ideally no address at all

Warnings

Do not attempt to alter the cover or remove any of the stamps from it.